


Casseroles and Cheez-Its

by impeccably_stressed



Category: The Wayhaven Chronicles (Interactive Fiction)
Genre: Detective Lauren Langford, F/F, and i love her, is a useless lesbian
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-23
Updated: 2018-03-23
Packaged: 2019-04-05 12:38:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,621
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14044431
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/impeccably_stressed/pseuds/impeccably_stressed
Summary: A Family Bravo two-shot about Nat and Ava's differing methods of settling into the neighborhood, featuring dorky flirting, a casserole, and a box of cheez-its.





	1. Nat's New Neighbor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Warning: useless lesbians abound!

There’s a spring to Nat’s step as she walks down the street to her and the team’s new home; the mere word makes a smile break on her face.

Certainly, the mission won’t last forever, and one day—likely sooner than she’d like—they will leave, but that doesn’t mean she won’t take this opportunity to live among humanity once more, and relish it for all her days.

Nat turns the corner onto Daisy Street—her heart soars at the name—where a mere three houses separate her from her _home_ , she’s so caught up in her thoughts that she takes much longer than usual to notice the feeling of eyes on her, along with a rapidly slowing automobile.

Natalie tenses, preparing herself for anything, and hoping she won’t have to tell Ava that she was caught off-guard, but when the car grows slows to a stop and parks beside her, Nat relaxes.

Scurrying quickly out of her vehicle is Detective Lauren Langford, Agent Langford’s daughter.

The person Unit Bravo has been assigned to guard.

“Ms. Sewell!” Detective Langford calls as she pops her head up above the car, resting her elbows on the roof of it. She laughs nervously before rubbing the back of her neck. A blush begins to settle on her cheeks. “Ah, I hope it’s not weird that I caught you like this. It’s just…Wayhaven is rather insular, so word travels fast about where the newcomers live.”

Nat smiles back, “I understand, Detective Langford. Small towns only have so much news to go around.”

“Ah, thank goodness, that makes this much less weird!”

Suddenly, the Detective pops back into her car, Nat goes closer to see what all her rummaging is for. When the Detective resurfaces, the smell of basil and marinara waft over her.

“I made you and your family a welcoming present!” She walks around her car toward Nat, clutching the dish firmly, even as she momentarily unbalances herself walking up onto the sidewalk. “Uh, ignore that,” the Detective quickly begs of her.

Natalie can’t help the grin on her face. “That’s such a thoughtful gesture, thank you so much Detective Langford.”

“Lauren,” she replies quickly, “I much prefer Lauren.”

“Lauren,” Nat tests out. She finds she rather enjoys saying Lauren’s name, and by the blush on Lauren’s face, so does she. “Well thank you, Lauren.”

Nat hears Lauren’s sharp inhale when their fingers brush as she hands over the dish and lovely spark passes between them.

Lauren quickly pulls her hands away, tucking one under the elbow of the other, which is tucking a piece of stray hair behind her ear.

It’s a surprise to Nat, but not an unwelcome one, when she finds herself wondering what it would feel like to do that.

“It’s a casserole,” Lauren says suddenly.

Nat blinks back to reality. “Ah, yes, thank you.”

“I wasn’t sure if there were any dietary restrictions you or your family have—” Nat tries not to tense at that, “so I made sure to cover the basics: vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, um…definitely no peanuts…”

Nat chuckles, interrupting the Detective’s—Lauren’s ramblings.

“I really do appreciate this,” Nat says calmly, and Lauren seems to relax. “I’m sure my family will love it.”

“Good,” Lauren smiles and her shoulders slacken with relief. “I’m glad to hear that.”

Nat doesn’t try to hurry along the companionable silence that passes between them as they hold each other’s gazes.

But just as she feels something electric flow between them again, Lauren coughs.

“I should probably go,” she says, and continues under her breath, “I’m still kind of on duty.”

She rounds her car back to the driver’s seat.

“Thank you again for the welcoming gift, Lauren,” Nat says just as the Detective opens her car door.

“No problem,” Lauren says, forcefully nonchalantly. She nervously, lightly wraps her knuckles on the window of her car door. “Um, if you ever need anything—” Her eyes suddenly widen and her face blanches, “I mean, I _hope_ you don’t need me. I mean! I hope you don’t need the police—uhhh.”

Nat tries to hold back a grin as the Detective runs a hand through her hair.

“I mean, _a_ detective, er— _the_ detect—no I mean, _me_ but like…in a…detective-ish way?” Lauren laughs nervously, her palm dragging what Nat suspects is either a stray tear or sweat off of her cheek. “Not that I _wouldn’t_ help you, of course I’d help you, I just wish, you know, that nothing bad happens to you…to anyone, of course.”

“I understand what you’re trying to say,” Nat says, attempting to ease the Detective’s nervousness. “I also hope we can meet in…casual capacities.”

Lauren smiles. “Yeah, exactly.”

She sighs and another momentary silence passes between them until it’s interrupted by a voice on the police scanner and Lauren jumps into her vehicle to respond quickly.

She rolls down the window closest to Nat and leans closer with a brilliant smile. “It was nice seeing you, Ms. Sewell.”

“Nat.”

“…Nat.”


	2. Ava's Awkward Avoidance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for how ~~potentially~~ _definitely_ OOC Ava is...but damnit, I just love hyper-competitive characters.

Ava pushes herself up from the breakfast table for the eighth time to check the kitchen window. Unlike the living room bay window, this one is not blocked by a tree, allowing her to survey the neighborhood unimpeded.

She squints her eyes at a pair of familiar figures standing three houses down. One she recognizes instantly as Nat, her height and friendly bearing make it simple to notice her closest friend, the other is none other than the person they’ve been sent here to protect: Detective Lauren Langford, Agent Langford’s daughter.

The woman Ava has been deftly ignoring all morning.

She tries to pull her attention away from the two but something roots her in her place, grips her throat with the same knuckle-white strength she grips the counter. Ava doesn’t understand the hold she feels—doesn’t want to understand, and it’s not until a nervous laugh bubbles out of Langford that Ava shakes her trance finally pushes herself away from the window.

She comes to a stop between the counters and breakfast table and looks around the still-pristine kitchen. Ava crosses her arms and frowns.

This kitchen will never be used, the bedrooms upstairs are entirely useless, the telly the Agency provided to ‘fill the house out’ will never be turned on, the refrigerator hums with wasted electricity, the alarm system is redundant, the cars are worthless. This entire mission they have been given is ridiculous and an immense waste of talent and resources, but here they are regardless, sitting and waiting, expected to immerse and protect and all manners of horrors Ava has never before expected the Agency to ask of her.

Ava is shaken from her musings when she hears Nat drop her bag onto the living room coffee table along with the distinct crinkling of tin foil.

“I just met our new neighbor outside!” she hears Nat exclaim happily from the other room.

“We know, she was flirting with you pretty loudly.” Farah laughs. “Plus, Ava’s been trying to hide from her all morning.”

Ava’s eyes widen like saucers.

“No!” She pops her head in from the kitchen, her cheeks blazing in embarrassment. “I was not _hiding_ ,” Ava begins, “I was—!”

“Avoiding? Evading?” Farah supplies without looking up from her phone, “Ducking behind the curtains?”

An indignant noise strangles and dies in Ava’s throat at the very _insinuation_ —!

“She was hiding,” Morgan says abruptly from the corner.

Ava glares at the two youngest vampires, crossing her arms she does. She huffs, “I just don’t see the need in introducing yourself to _everyone_.”

“Well that’s too bad,” Nat says as she unwraps a tinfoil covered baking dish, “Because Detective Langford gave us a lovely casserole as a welcoming gift.”

Farah finally wrenches her eyes from her phone. “Whoa, you flirted so hard she gave you food?”

Morgan scrunches her nose, “Smells like shit.”

“It smells _lovely_ ,” Nat spits back at Morgan before turning to face Farah again, “And no, she simply wanted to give _us_ a welcoming gift.”

“Ooh, is that basil?” Farah asks as she jumps up from the couch to inspect the dish. “Oh man, this looks amazing! Do you think if you flirt with her some more she’ll make us brownies?”

Ava feels something constricting her throat. Before she gives herself time to dwell on it, she turns on her heel and stalks into the kitchen, stopping when she reaches the pantry. She pushes the door aside and grabs the first thing within her grasp. In a moment she marches back out with a frown on her face and a bright orange box in her grasp. She stops at the front door and turns around to face her team, her arms crossed.

“Well?” Ava asks expectantly, “Let’s go greet her.”

Morgan groans.

“With…Cheez-Its?” Farah asks, her brow furrowed in confusion.

Ava rolls her eyes as though it’s the most obvious thing in the world, “Well I’m not letting her win at this whole welcoming thing!”

Nat only smiles with infinite patience. She sets Langford’s dish on the coffee table. In two strides, she’s made the way over to Ava and gently pries the box from Ava’s hands.

“I absolutely agree,” Nat says, “but perhaps we should try something less…manufactured?”

Ava nods, contemplating. “Yes, that’s right. Fight like-gifts with like-gifts.” She gasps and strikes her fist into her open palm, “And a homemade four course meal will outdo _anything_ she tries next, so we automatically win!”

Just as Farah opens her mouth to say something, Nat covers her mouth with her hand and whispers in her ear harshly, “Shh! This is the closest I’ve gotten to a dinner party in ages. Don’t ruin this!”

**Author's Note:**

> Follow [my personal tumblr](http://impeccably-stressed.tumblr.com/) if you like memes, foxes, and shitposting.
> 
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> 
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